US10664228B1 - Method and system for automatically controlling audio output of a television device based on ambient noise - Google Patents

Method and system for automatically controlling audio output of a television device based on ambient noise Download PDF

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US10664228B1
US10664228B1 US16/533,536 US201916533536A US10664228B1 US 10664228 B1 US10664228 B1 US 10664228B1 US 201916533536 A US201916533536 A US 201916533536A US 10664228 B1 US10664228 B1 US 10664228B1
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signal
audio
audio signal
audio output
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Gyana Ranjan Senapati
Anirudha Ramdas Zade
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Top Victory Investments Ltd
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TP Vision Europe BV
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    • H04N21/42204—User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor
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Definitions

  • the disclosure relates to a method and a system for automatically controlling audio output of a television device based on ambient noise.
  • ambient noise from, for example, nearby electric appliances indoors (e.g., an electric fan, a ventilator, an air conditioning equipment, a washing machine, a dish washer, etc.), or from outside of the room/house may be present and affect the user's experience of viewing. For example, it may be difficult to hear the dialogue in the program due to the presence of the ambient noise.
  • nearby electric appliances indoors e.g., an electric fan, a ventilator, an air conditioning equipment, a washing machine, a dish washer, etc.
  • the ambient noise cannot be adjusted by the user, and thus the user may need to manually adjust an output volume of the television device in order to clearly hear the audio content of the program (e.g., the dialogue).
  • One object of the disclosure is to provide a method for automatically controlling audio output based on ambient noise.
  • the method is for automatically controlling audio output of a television system that includes a television device.
  • the television device is connected to an input signal source and includes a processor, an ambient sound monitoring unit, and an audio output unit.
  • the method is implemented using the processor of the television device and includes the steps of:
  • controlling the audio output unit in response to receipt of a source signal from the input signal source, controlling the audio output unit to output an audio signal extracted from the source signal;
  • the audio output unit when it is determined that the audio output needs to be adjusted, adjusting the audio signal based on at least the ambient sound data to generate an adjusted audio signal, and controlling the audio output unit to output the adjusted audio signal.
  • Another object of the disclosure is to provide a system that is configured to implement the above-mentioned method.
  • the television system includes a television device that is connected to an input signal source and that includes a processor, an ambient sound monitoring unit, and an audio output unit.
  • the processor is configured to:
  • control the audio output unit in response to receipt of a source signal from the input signal source, control the audio output unit to output an audio signal extracted from the source signal;
  • the audio output unit when it is determined that the audio output needs to be adjusted, adjust the audio signal based on at least the ambient sound data, to generate an adjusted audio signal, and control the audio output unit to output the adjusted audio signal.
  • FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a television system that includes a television device according to one embodiment of the disclosure
  • FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the television system
  • FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating steps of a method for automatically controlling audio output of the television device based on ambient noise according to one embodiment of the disclosure.
  • FIG. 1 illustrates a television system that includes a television device 100 according to one embodiment of the disclosure.
  • the television device 100 includes a processor 110 , a program monitoring unit 120 , a video/audio decoding unit 125 , a data storage 130 , an input signal monitoring unit 140 , an ambient sound monitoring unit 150 , a display screen 155 , an audio output unit 160 and a communicating component 170 .
  • the processor 110 may include, but not limited to, a single core processor, a multi-core processor, a dual-core mobile processor, a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor (DSP), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), and/or the like.
  • DSP digital signal processor
  • FPGA field-programmable gate array
  • ASIC application specific integrated circuit
  • RFIC radio-frequency integrated circuit
  • the program monitoring unit 120 is electrically connected to the processor 110 and an input signal source.
  • the input signal source provides a source signal that may be one of an over-the-air (OTA) television signal, a satellite television signal, a cable television signal, a media on demand (MOD) signal, etc.
  • the source signal may be in the form of an analog signal or a digital signal, and includes an electronic program guide (EPG) containing program metadata regarding a program.
  • EPG electronic program guide
  • the input source signal may be in the form of a media file (e.g., a pre-recorded program) accessed from a built-in hard disk drive (HDD), an external storage connected to the processor 110 via a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, or a high definition multimedia interface (HDMI), and a viewer may select the media file for playback.
  • a media file e.g., a pre-recorded program
  • HDD hard disk drive
  • USB Universal Serial Bus
  • HDMI high definition multimedia interface
  • the video/audio decoding unit 125 may be embodied using a coder-decoder (codec) circuit, is electrically connected to the processor 110 and the input signal source.
  • the video/audio decoding unit 125 is configured to receive the source signal from the input signal source, and is controlled by the processor 110 to perform a decoding operation on the source signal so as to obtain a video signal and an audio signal from the source signal.
  • codec coder-decoder
  • the data storage 130 may be embodied using one or more of a hard disk, a solid-state drive (SSD) and other non-transitory storage medium, and stores at least one user profile and a set of software applications therein.
  • the set of software applications may include an operating system (OS) to be executed by the processor 110 .
  • OS operating system
  • the input signal monitoring unit 140 is connected to the input signal source for continuously determining an energy level of the source signal. It is noted that the energy level of the source signal of the program may be changing constantly throughout the entire span of the program. For example, in a segment of the program containing content related to a quiet environment, the energy level of the source signal may be low (i.e., a corresponding volume outputted is low). On the other hand, in another segment of the same program containing content related to loud activities, the energy level of the source signal may be relatively higher. As a result, a volume that is outputted during broadcast of the program may differ even though a volume setting of the television device 100 is kept constant. In some embodiments, the input signal monitoring unit 140 further calculates an average value of the energy level of the source signal that is measured over a predetermined time period (e.g., 10 seconds) for subsequent uses.
  • a predetermined time period e.g. 10 seconds
  • the ambient sound monitoring unit 150 may be embodied using a microphone set or a transducer set disposed on an outer case of the television device 100 , and when activated, is capable of measuring ambient noise and obtaining ambient sound data associated with the ambient noise.
  • the ambient sound data may include an energy level of the ambient noise.
  • the display screen 155 and the audio output unit 160 are electrically connected to the processor 110 and the video/audio decoding unit 125 , and are controlled by the processor 110 to display the video signal and output the audio signal, respectively.
  • the audio output unit 160 is a speaker built in the television device 100 .
  • the audio output unit 160 may be connected to the processor 110 using a wireless communication mechanism such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth®, etc.
  • the audio output unit 160 is controlled to output the audio signal based on a current output setting which may be adjusted manually.
  • the current output setting includes at least the volume setting that is related to a current output volume.
  • the television device 100 may be provided with more advanced sound control, including a sound equalizer (which may be embodied using physical circuitry or software programs constituting of filters) for adjusting energy levels of components of the audio signal at different frequency bands.
  • the communicating component 170 is electrically connected to the processor 110 , and may include a short-range wireless communicating module supporting a short-range wireless communication network using a wireless technology of Bluetooth® and/or Wi-Fi, etc., and a mobile communicating module supporting telecommunication using Long-Term Evolution (LTE), the third generation (3G) and/or fourth generation (4G) of wireless mobile telecommunications technology, and/or the like.
  • LTE Long-Term Evolution
  • the television system further includes a remote control 180 , and the communicating component 170 is in communication with the remote control 180 for receiving a control signal therefrom.
  • the control signal is for triggering the television device 100 to switch to an intended channel, to output the audio signal with an intended output volume, or to change one of a plurality of setting options of the television device 100 .
  • the television device 100 may include a control panel disposed on the outer case of the television device 100 .
  • the control panel includes one or more buttons that enable the user to operate the television device 100 to switch to an intended channel, to output the audio signal with an intended output volume, or to change one of the setting options.
  • the remote control 180 is also installed with a microphone or transducer to serve as the ambient sound monitoring unit 150 .
  • the ambient sound monitoring unit 150 may include multiple microphones or transducers 151 that are disposed on the outer case of the television device 100 and on the remote control 180 (see FIG. 2 ).
  • some components of the television device 100 may be embodied using, for example, microprocessors that execute software instructions, firmware, etc.
  • some components of the television device 100 may be integrated into a set-top box (STB).
  • STB set-top box
  • FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating steps of a method for automatically controlling audio output of a television device based on ambient noise according to one embodiment of the disclosure. The method may be implemented by the television device 100 as described in FIG. 1 .
  • the television device 100 when the television device 100 is powered on and is broadcasting a program, a user watching the program may operate the remote control 180 to enable the television device 100 to enter a noise adjustment mode.
  • the noise adjustment mode When the noise adjustment mode is activated, the method of FIG. 3 may be implemented.
  • the noise adjustment mode may be activated by default once the television device 100 is powered on. This setting of activation of the noise adjustment mode may be manually done by the user and stored by the processor 110 in the data storage 130 in advance.
  • the television device 100 receives the source signal from the input signal source.
  • the processor 110 controls the video/audio decoding unit 125 to perform the decoding operation on the source signal so as to obtain the video signal and the audio signal from the source signal.
  • the processor 110 controls the display screen 155 to display the video signal (i.e., visual content of the program), and controls the audio output unit 160 to output the audio signal (i.e., audio content of the program).
  • step 304 the processor 110 activates the ambient sound monitoring unit 150 so as to obtain the ambient sound data. It is noted that step 304 may be implemented when the user operates the remote control 180 or the control panel of the television device 100 to activate the ambient sound monitoring unit 150 . In some embodiments, the processor 110 automatically activates the ambient sound monitoring unit 150 to obtain the ambient sound data. In some examples, when the noise adjustment mode is activated as the television device 100 is powered on, step 304 is implemented simultaneously with step 302 . In embodiments that the ambient sound monitoring unit 150 is mounted on the remote control 180 , step 304 includes the processor 110 transmitting a signal to the remote control 180 through the communicating component 170 so as to instruct the remote control 180 to activate the ambient sound monitoring unit 150 that is mounted on the remote control 180 .
  • the processor 110 determines, in step 306 , whether the audio output (i.e., outputting of the audio signal) by the audio output unit 160 needs to be adjusted.
  • the determination is made by the processor 110 executing a corresponding one of the software applications stored in the data storage 130 , based on at least the ambient sound data.
  • the corresponding software application may include one or more algorithms for performing calculations based on inputs from other components of the television device 100 , so as to make the determination.
  • the energy level of the ambient noise may be determined from the ambient sound data.
  • the energy level of the ambient noise may then be compared with the average value of the energy level of the source signal, or compared with an output energy level of the audio signal that is being outputted by the output audio control unit 160 .
  • the output energy level of the audio signal is related to the current output volume indicated by the current output setting.
  • the algorithm may yield a result indicating that the energy level of the ambient noise is comparable to the energy level of the source signal, and therefore the ambient noise may become a distraction to the user watching the program broadcasted by the television device 100 .
  • the output energy level of the audio signal should be increased to address the presence of the ambient noise.
  • a noise threshold e.g. 40 dB
  • the output energy level of the audio signal may be increased to address the presence of the ambient noise regardless of the energy level of the source signal.
  • the algorithm may further take an estimated distance between the user and the television device 100 into consideration.
  • the estimated distance is obtained by estimating a distance between the television device 100 and the remote control 180 .
  • the television system further includes a depth camera 190 that is mounted on the television device 100 , and the estimated distance is obtained by the processor 110 controlling the depth camera 190 to capture an image of the user and estimating a depth to the user (i.e., the distance between the user and the television device 100 ) according to the image of the user.
  • the algorithm may further take specific information regarding the program that is being broadcasted (e.g., a genre of the program) into consideration.
  • the specific information may be obtained from the program metadata contained in the EPG received by the program monitoring unit 120 .
  • the processor 110 may acquire the genre of the program from the program metadata. Then, based on the genre of the program, the processor 110 may determine that one or more components of the audio signal should be adjusted. In some cases, the processor 110 may acquire a channel number associated with a channel that is broadcasting the program watched by the user. Using the channel number, the processor 110 may be able to “deduce” the genre of the program (for example, when the channel is a news channel, it may be deduced that the program is a news program).
  • the algorithm may further take a user setting included in the user profile stored in the data storage 130 into consideration.
  • the user setting may include an age of the user and a sound preference of the user.
  • the noise threshold used to make the determination may be lowered (e.g., to 30 dB).
  • the processor 110 may access the sound preference of the user profile stored in the data storage 130 , and determine whether the audio output needs to be adjusted further based on the sound preference (e.g., the sound preference may indicate that the user intends to listen to the audio more clearly, and as a result, the predetermined threshold used to make the determination may be lowered (e.g., 0.3)).
  • the determination in step 306 may be done with any combination of the above aspects as described above being taken into consideration. That is to say, in addition to the energy level of the ambient noise, the processor 110 may for example make the determination further based on a combination of the energy level of the source signal, the current output setting, the specific information regarding the program that is being broadcasted, and the user setting of the user profile.
  • step 308 When it is determined that the audio output needs to be adjusted, the flow proceeds to step 308 . Otherwise, the flow goes back to step 306 .
  • step 308 the processor 110 adjusts the audio signal based on at least the ambient sound data to generate an adjusted audio signal.
  • the processor 110 may determine that the original audio signal should be outputted with a higher intensity (i.e., louder).
  • the processor 110 may calculate an intended intensity, and adjust the original audio signal to have the intended intensity (e.g., to adjust an overall volume of the original audio signal).
  • the intended intensity may be positively related to the energy level of the ambient noise.
  • the intensity of the original audio signal may correspondingly increase by a fixed proportion (e.g., 50% of the energy level of the ambient noise).
  • the processor 110 may divide the ambient sound data into different components in various frequency bands, divide the audio signal into different components in the various frequency bands, and calculate intended intensities respectively for components of the audio signal in the various frequency bands.
  • each of the ambient sound data and the audio signal may be divided into a low frequency band component (also known as a “bass” sound), a high frequency band component (also known as a “treble” sound), or other additional frequency band components.
  • the processor 110 may adjust the components of the audio signal to have the intended intensities (e.g., to adjust a volume of the bass sound of the audio signal, a volume of the treble sound of the audio signal, or at least one parameter used in a filter included in the sound equalizer).
  • the processor 110 may adjust the components of the audio signal to have the intended intensities (e.g., to adjust a volume of the bass sound of the audio signal, a volume of the treble sound of the audio signal, or at least one parameter used in a filter included in the sound equalizer).
  • the processor 110 may adjust the components of the audio signal to have the intended intensities (e.g., to adjust a volume of the bass sound of the audio signal, a volume of the treble sound of the audio signal, or at least one parameter used in a filter included in the sound equalizer).
  • that component of the audio signal may be more audible to the user.
  • the audio signal may be divided into different components such as a dialog component, a soundtrack component, etc.
  • the processor 110 may further calculate the adjusted audio signal according to the program metadata.
  • the processor 110 may be configured to determine whether a condition for dialog enhancement (e.g., whether the energy level of the ambient noise is or has become close to the energy level of the dialog component) has been met.
  • the condition for dialog enhancement may indicate that the dialog component of the audio signal should be enhanced.
  • the processor 110 may adjust the dialog component to have a higher energy level.
  • the processor 110 may be configured to determine whether a condition for background sound enhancement has been met. When it is determined that the condition for background sound enhancement has been met, in adjusting the audio signal, the processor 110 may adjust the background sound component to have a higher energy level.
  • the processor 110 may also take additional aspects into consideration.
  • the sound preference of the user may indicate how one or more component(s) of the audio signal should be adjusted (e.g., the user prefers to have the bass sound enhanced).
  • the operation of adjusting the audio signal includes generating a noise cancellation signal based on the ambient sound data, and combining the noise cancellation signal and the audio signal for generating the adjusted audio signal.
  • the noise cancellation signal may be generated using an active noise control (ANC) technique in the field of digital signal processing.
  • step 310 the processor 110 controls the audio output unit 160 to output the adjusted audio signal.
  • the audio output may be adjusted so as to enhance user experience of the sound of the program in the presence of the ambient noise.
  • step 308 is implemented for a predetermined time period (e.g., 1 minute)
  • the flow may go back to step 306 to determine whether the ambient noise is still present.
  • the embodiments of the disclosure provide a method and a television system that are configured to automatically adjust output of an audio signal based on the presence of ambient noise.
  • the audio signal may be further adjusted to provide a even better experience for the user watching the program broadcasted by the television system.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
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  • Signal Processing (AREA)
  • Human Computer Interaction (AREA)
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  • Computer Networks & Wireless Communication (AREA)
  • Computer Vision & Pattern Recognition (AREA)
  • Audiology, Speech & Language Pathology (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Television Receiver Circuits (AREA)
  • Circuit For Audible Band Transducer (AREA)
US16/533,536 2019-07-23 2019-08-06 Method and system for automatically controlling audio output of a television device based on ambient noise Active US10664228B1 (en)

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EP19187905.5A EP3771202B1 (fr) 2019-07-23 2019-07-23 Procédé et système de commande automatique de sortie audio d'un dispositif de télévision sur la base du bruit ambiant

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EP3771202C0 (fr) 2023-08-30

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